Valerie Grim discovered flyers from a white nationalist group posted outside her office at Indiana University in Bloomington. Credit A J Mast for The New York Times

This Week in Hate highlights hate crimes and harassment around the country since the election of President Trump.

Growing up in Mississippi in the 1960s, Prof. Valerie Grim was only too familiar with racism. So when she discovered flyers from a white nationalist group posted outside her office at Indiana University Bloomington, she wasn’t intimidated.

Instead, she was curious about what had led someone to post flyers depicting Michelangelo’s David along with the phrase “Let’s become great again” and the name of Identity Evropa, a white nationalist group, outside offices in the university’s department of African-American and African diaspora studies. The group’s name, symbol and Twitter handle were also written on the whiteboard on Prof. Grim’s door.

“This is someone who really got a wrong view of history,” says Professor Grim, who teaches African-American history.

Hate

The NYT’s This Week in Hate column has still not deigned to cover the beatings of dissidents in Berkeley by masked blackshirts.

But the distribution of flyers featuring the greatest work of art by a single artist demands massive coverage.

The city of Florence should dress David from head to toe in black, including a mask, so he would stop being such a Symbol of Hate.

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Search within youtube and you will get 918 hits for "we wuz kangz". Back in the 1990s whenever I had to drive through or near NYC I would turn on the infamous WLIB-AM radio station. It was infamous for all black programing and one or two shows were in the we wuz kangz vein going on about Egypt and building Pyramids. The great black civilizations of Africa and so on. Another show I remember was "Your credit repair doctor"

I suspect they haven't had integrity in decades, but while the direction of the country has been monotonically in their favor, they had the luxury of faking it. With the small bump in the road of Trump's election, they no longer feel they have the luxury of anything short of total warfare to keep affairs from taking a different direction. It is probably particularly infuriating that the US is only a few years from the sort of permanent demographic shift that would give them total power and now they feel they are improbably being stopped just short of the Berlin city limits.

I don’t know what the greatest work of art by a single artist is, but David isn’t even the most famous one. That would be the Mona Lisa. Don’t get me wrong, Michelangelo was great and SJWs are scum, but I think Steve got a little carried away there.

Would have to disagree. Mona Lisa is extraordinary but the technical demands of painting vs those of carving marble with a hammer and chisel are not comparable. The Mona Lisa is probably the most well-known piece art in the world but fame (God knows there are examples ad nauseum in Hollywood) is not necessarily the same as greatness. Michelangelo's accomplishment with hammer and chisel far surpasses the Mona Lisa in the sheer technical demands of the medium. Perhaps even more of an accomplishment than David is Michelangelo's 'Pieta' in that it transmits the anguished depth of parental bereavement in a way that no other work of art has ever approached.

Laocoon and his sons, which was dug up around the time Columbus discovered America, was sculpted in the second century BC. Google it. We may admire the Renaissance artists, since time has reduced the scope of our general knowledge to the very best of their lot, but they were, themselves, in awe of the Ancients, whom they emulated. I saw Laocoon in the Vatican and only the Rape of Persephone has left a deeper impression on me.

Well, obviously, the concept of "law" is merely a white, patriarchal, bourgeois structure of oppression that allows racism, sexism, bigotry, homophobia and transphobia, so it has no validity for social justice warriors.

Seriously, the academy has become a Bolshevik institution, subsidized by your tax dollars and your government. Colleges are, for practical purposes, the "vanguard of the proletariat" just as Lenin saw the Party.

Western Civilization cannot and will not survive unless colleges and universities are purged of these subversives. And soon.

The monument, which sits atop a hill surrounded by trash heaps and unfinished homes, depicts a man, woman, and child who are ostensibly meant to be African yet look glaringly like chiseled Soviet caricatures.

Stereotypical story of corruption combined with ignorance and imaginary pride that is Africa. The story is pretty much indicative of any nation in central and southern Africa, especially since they don't have the evil white man interfering with their business.
Wade gets 30℅ of the tourism take because it was his idea. How hilarious. I wonder if his cut comes before or after they collect the 25 mil it cost to build. Another thing is, what is considered tourism revenue? Any time a stranger comes to town and buys some roasted monkey meat on a stick , does a portion of the profit goes to Wade? Sounds like a massive shake down of the local shopkeepers.
He took a page right out of the Democratic play book.

NYT is notorious for selectively quoting people. I have a buddy that's a contractor at the NSA He punched up that phone call for me, and I've amended the the article with the professor's full quote.

“This is someone who really got a wrong view of history, we wuz kangs,” says Professor Grim, who teaches African-American history.

Search within youtube and you will get 918 hits for “we wuz kangz”. Back in the 1990s whenever I had to drive through or near NYC I would turn on the infamous WLIB-AM radio station. It was infamous for all black programing and one or two shows were in the we wuz kangz vein going on about Egypt and building Pyramids. The great black civilizations of Africa and so on. Another show I remember was “Your credit repair doctor”

This one is bigger:
http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/african-renaissance-monument

I think the first sentence of that article says it all.

The monument, which sits atop a hill surrounded by trash heaps and unfinished homes, depicts a man, woman, and child who are ostensibly meant to be African yet look glaringly like chiseled Soviet caricatures.

I think the distance shot for the African Renaissance Statue says it all.

Obviously inspired by "The Lion King", and constructed out of inch thick bronze sheets (you can even see the joins off the sheets on the statue), it looks pretty trite, but there is an exposed breast, so there's that. However, I don't understand the pointing West, unless they wish to imply an eagerness to be brought to the Americas in chains, or perhaps it may have a future orientation, in which case it could be construed as a threat.

Vince Young hasn’t played in the NFL since 2011, but he apparently wants to give professional football one more try…Young, 33, is one of several veteran NFL players that has garnered some interest from the new Spring League, an independent football league that will debut in April.

A college football superstar, leading the Texas Longhorns to a BCS championship with a victory over USC in the 2006 Rose Bowl, Young was selected third overall by Tennessee in the NFL draft.

He made the Pro Bowl twice in four seasons with the Titans but was cut after the 2010 season following a disagreement with then-coach Jeff Fisher. After that, he played sparingly as a backup for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2011 and didn’t make any regular-season rosters after stints with the Buffalo Bills, Green Bay Packers and Cleveland Browns through 2014.

Young filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January 2014 and accepted a job with the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement at the University of Texas that summer. He was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated in January 2015 and was sentenced to 18 months’ probation after pleading no contest last month.

I say about 24 hours, but the NY Times will never acknowledge as such. It's part of their disinformation long game to always publicize these incidents but never follow up with a retraction when it is almost proved that it was a sham from the get go. Just keep seeding into the consciousness the meme that America is irretrievably racist and the KKK purge is just around the corner.

This is almost certainly legit. That's what Identity Evropa does, put up that exact kind of maximally inoffensive poster around colleges. They've done it in the SF Bay area, LA, and a few other places. It wouldn't surprise me to learn that they have a member in Bloomington.

I guarantee that when some black-clad thug attacks someone with a concealed carry permit and they defend themselves the NYT will spill plenty of ink. But of course it will be slandering the one who protected himself and not the aggressor.

The thing that is interesting is that something very like that happened in Seattle last month and as far as I saw the NYT did not cover it. I think the incident had a few characteristics (e.g. existence of video, demographics of people involved) which did not serve the narrative, but still surprised at the lack of coverage.

That incident happened January 22, but I have seen very little coverage anywhere in February. Does anyone know how this is playing out?

I don't know what the greatest work of art by a single artist is, but David isn't even the most famous one. That would be the Mona Lisa. Don't get me wrong, Michelangelo was great and SJWs are scum, but I think Steve got a little carried away there.

It’s so enjoyable to trigger the modern left. What can they really do against a picture of David other than point and sputter? Fash on, Steve.

BTW this is a photo of David. Wouldn’t criticism be anti-Semitic? Or was Michelangelo appropriating Jewish culture, as Christians have done for over a thousand years at that point? They can blame the self-hating Saul/Paul of Tarsus for that one.

The monument, which sits atop a hill surrounded by trash heaps and unfinished homes, depicts a man, woman, and child who are ostensibly meant to be African yet look glaringly like chiseled Soviet caricatures.

I think the distance shot for the African Renaissance Statue says it all.

Obviously inspired by “The Lion King”, and constructed out of inch thick bronze sheets (you can even see the joins off the sheets on the statue), it looks pretty trite, but there is an exposed breast, so there’s that. However, I don’t understand the pointing West, unless they wish to imply an eagerness to be brought to the Americas in chains, or perhaps it may have a future orientation, in which case it could be construed as a threat.

I vaguely recall the (((NYT))) having considerably more integrity and credibility only a few years ago, but I have never been an avid reader of it so I feel like this might be in my head.

I suspect they haven’t had integrity in decades, but while the direction of the country has been monotonically in their favor, they had the luxury of faking it. With the small bump in the road of Trump’s election, they no longer feel they have the luxury of anything short of total warfare to keep affairs from taking a different direction. It is probably particularly infuriating that the US is only a few years from the sort of permanent demographic shift that would give them total power and now they feel they are improbably being stopped just short of the Berlin city limits.

Kiara Robles is the beautiful young lady Trump supporter who was attacked and pepper sprayed at a UC Berkeley event. The anti-Free Speech thugs in Berkeley hit innocent people over the head with flag poles and engaged in violent attacks on bystanders.

Kiara Robles and her friends were brutally attacked by UC Berkeley bullies. The shysters at the New York Times are on the side of the anti-Free Speech thugs who use violence to shut down speech they don’t like.

Kiara Robles has now predicted that Marine Le Pen will be the next president of France. Robles also says that France will leave the European Union. I agree with Kiara Robles.

Watch the French cop cars in the video that Robles sent out on Twitter. The French police cars are retreating from the mob. The French cops were probably ordered to avoid any conflict with the mob. The cops at UC Berkeley were ordered to stand down too.

Which nation descends into civil war first, France or the United States?

Vince Young hasn't played in the NFL since 2011, but he apparently wants to give professional football one more try...Young, 33, is one of several veteran NFL players that has garnered some interest from the new Spring League, an independent football league that will debut in April.

A college football superstar, leading the Texas Longhorns to a BCS championship with a victory over USC in the 2006 Rose Bowl, Young was selected third overall by Tennessee in the NFL draft.

He made the Pro Bowl twice in four seasons with the Titans but was cut after the 2010 season following a disagreement with then-coach Jeff Fisher. After that, he played sparingly as a backup for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2011 and didn’t make any regular-season rosters after stints with the Buffalo Bills, Green Bay Packers and Cleveland Browns through 2014.

Young filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January 2014 and accepted a job with the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement at the University of Texas that summer. He was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated in January 2015 and was sentenced to 18 months’ probation after pleading no contest last month.

He scored a 6 on the Wonderlic IQ test, who better to work as a university diversicrat? plus he misses eating at The Cheesecake Factory, probably why he needs an NFL paycheck.

Unladen, Young passed through Buffalo, never played in a game as I recall. There was a story that he never packed a suitcase or garment bag. Discarded clothes after wearing and buy new as needed. Did I mention he is flat ass broke.

I suspect they haven't had integrity in decades, but while the direction of the country has been monotonically in their favor, they had the luxury of faking it. With the small bump in the road of Trump's election, they no longer feel they have the luxury of anything short of total warfare to keep affairs from taking a different direction. It is probably particularly infuriating that the US is only a few years from the sort of permanent demographic shift that would give them total power and now they feel they are improbably being stopped just short of the Berlin city limits.

The Times has been evil scum for at least 85 years; see Walter Duranty. To this day, they refuse to return the Pulitzer Prize(!) they got for his “reporting”.

I say about 24 hours, but the NY Times will never acknowledge as such. It’s part of their disinformation long game to always publicize these incidents but never follow up with a retraction when it is almost proved that it was a sham from the get go. Just keep seeding into the consciousness the meme that America is irretrievably racist and the KKK purge is just around the corner.

But the distribution of flyers featuring the greatest work of art by a single artist demands massive coverage.

You’re being kind of disingenuous here. Obviously this is getting coverage because they’re flyers for a white nationalist group, and they were posted around the African-American studies department. It would have gotten coverage even if there was no artwork on the flyers and they just printed the organization’s name on them. And posters for the art club or something with Michaelangelo’s David wouldn’t have gotten covered.

OT : I’ve lived in this apt . since 1999 . When I moved here it was 99% white . Now when I see a white person I do a double take . Until a few months ago my building remained white except for the 5 Indians living in a one bedroom apt on the ground floor . 5 of them in a 1 bedroom apt . with no furniture . But a few months ago a Negro moved in above me with her 4 year old “autistic” brat . This seems to be some sort of badge of honor for her . What do I care for the Negro and the Negroes problems ? Well I care because after 18 years they have finally arrived in Towson in numbers . Subsequently I have this little pickenniny and her mother stomping on the floor above my bedroom from ( no shit ) 0600 to 2330 EVERY DAY . And who should I complain to ? The 10 Negroes and 1 English coalburner in the office ? This is Maryland after one of the most progressive , regressive states in the Union . Fuck Whitey right ?

Is there any work of art or sculpture by an African that even remotely compares to any work by Michelangelo or Da Vinci or d" Agarte? If so please provide a link.

Laocoon and his sons, which was dug up around the time Columbus discovered America, was sculpted in the second century BC. Google it. We may admire the Renaissance artists, since time has reduced the scope of our general knowledge to the very best of their lot, but they were, themselves, in awe of the Ancients, whom they emulated. I saw Laocoon in the Vatican and only the Rape of Persephone has left a deeper impression on me.

In trying to think of an alternative to The David, the Laocoon also occurred to me (also the wooden altar by Veit Stoss in Krakow). But Steve has a point, that is, The David may or may not be the greatest single work of art created by man, but #1 - it surpasses paintings because it is 3D, and #2 - it is a single piece, with a single focus, and a single person. (Sorry to leave music out of the equation, but that's the way it goes: if we were doing architecture, I would at least to a hat tip to the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, a sight like this is simply stupefying)

Interesting to note Michelangelo's role regarding the proper placement of the arm:

When the statue was discovered, Laocoön's right arm was missing, along with part of the hand of one child and the right arm of the other, and various sections of snake. The older son, on the right, was detached from the other two figures.[40] The age of the altar used as a seat by Laocoön remains uncertain.[41] Artists and connoisseurs debated how the missing parts should be interpreted. Michelangelo suggested that the missing right arms were originally bent back over the shoulder. Others, however, believed it was more appropriate to show the right arms extended outwards in a heroic gesture

In 1906 Ludwig Pollak, archaeologist, art dealer and director of the Museo Barracco, discovered a fragment of a marble arm in a builder‘s yard in Rome, close to the findspot of the group. Noting a stylistic similarity to the Laocoön group he presented it to the Vatican Museums: it remained in their storerooms for half a century. In 1957 the museum decided that this arm—bent, as Michelangelo had suggested—had originally belonged to this Laocoön, and replaced it. According to Paolo Liverani: "Remarkably, despite the lack of a critical section, the join between the torso and the arm was guaranteed by a drill hole on one piece which aligned perfectly with a corresponding hole on the other".

Regarding the ancients versus Renaissance men, I'm not an expert on sculpture or architecture. But I'd definitely say modern painting blows ancient painting out of the water, as does the music, though admittedly I've only heard snatches of ancient music. I also prefer their lyric poetry and prose fiction.

Laocoon and his sons, which was dug up around the time Columbus discovered America, was sculpted in the second century BC. Google it. We may admire the Renaissance artists, since time has reduced the scope of our general knowledge to the very best of their lot, but they were, themselves, in awe of the Ancients, whom they emulated. I saw Laocoon in the Vatican and only the Rape of Persephone has left a deeper impression on me.

The Renascence was like a Hollywood theme park based on ancient Greece for rich Italians.

Laocoon and his sons, which was dug up around the time Columbus discovered America, was sculpted in the second century BC. Google it. We may admire the Renaissance artists, since time has reduced the scope of our general knowledge to the very best of their lot, but they were, themselves, in awe of the Ancients, whom they emulated. I saw Laocoon in the Vatican and only the Rape of Persephone has left a deeper impression on me.

In trying to think of an alternative to The David, the Laocoon also occurred to me (also the wooden altar by Veit Stoss in Krakow). But Steve has a point, that is, The David may or may not be the greatest single work of art created by man, but #1 – it surpasses paintings because it is 3D, and #2 – it is a single piece, with a single focus, and a single person. (Sorry to leave music out of the equation, but that’s the way it goes: if we were doing architecture, I would at least to a hat tip to the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, a sight like this is simply stupefying)

I've never been to Barcelona and hesitate to do so because I hear it's thronged and schlonged with tourists. Not that other cultural cities aren't, but I wasn't taking that into consideration when I decided to visit them. Or when I do so for work. I've become stuffy, I guess. I really liked Madrid! Bonus - almost all of the obvious tourists I was hearing on the streets were Hispanophones, which helped with the... immersion.

The city of Florence should dress David from head to toe in black, including a mask, so he would stop being such a Symbol of Hate.

Dunno, Steve. Would that be enough? I mean, we are talking about a statue that represents the White Man as the apotheosis of humanity. That’s really triggering. Just imagine what TN Coates must feel when he looks at it.How can his black body measure up?

No, it seems to me that the Taliban solution must be applied. To prevent POC from enduring mental trauma, we should hammer the statue into dust.It’s the only way to be sure.

The monument, which sits atop a hill surrounded by trash heaps and unfinished homes, depicts a man, woman, and child who are ostensibly meant to be African yet look glaringly like chiseled Soviet caricatures.

Laocoon and his sons, which was dug up around the time Columbus discovered America, was sculpted in the second century BC. Google it. We may admire the Renaissance artists, since time has reduced the scope of our general knowledge to the very best of their lot, but they were, themselves, in awe of the Ancients, whom they emulated. I saw Laocoon in the Vatican and only the Rape of Persephone has left a deeper impression on me.

If time has reduced the scope of our general knowledge to the best of the Renaissance lot, it did about that times a thousand to Renaissance men vis a vis the ancients.

Valerie Grim is writing a book called "Caught Between Forty Acres and a Class Action: Black Farmers Protest Against The United States Department of Agriculture, 1995-2005." (in progress)

I wonder if she or any of her relatives received any of the Pigford settlement.

What law was violated?

Well, obviously, the concept of “law” is merely a white, patriarchal, bourgeois structure of oppression that allows racism, sexism, bigotry, homophobia and transphobia, so it has no validity for social justice warriors.

Seriously, the academy has become a Bolshevik institution, subsidized by your tax dollars and your government. Colleges are, for practical purposes, the “vanguard of the proletariat” just as Lenin saw the Party.

Western Civilization cannot and will not survive unless colleges and universities are purged of these subversives. And soon.

Kind to the world, but to itself unkind,
A worm is born, that dying noiselessly
Despoils itself to clothe fair limbs, and be
In its true worth by death alone divined.
Oh, would that I might die, for her to find
Raiment in my outworn mortality!
That, changing like the snake, I might be free
To cast the slough wherein I dwell confined!
Nay, were it mine, that shaggy fleece that stays,
Woven and wrought into a vestment fair,
Around her beauteous bosom in such bliss!
All through the day she'd clasp me! Would I were
The shoes that bear her burden! When the ways
Were wet with rain, her feet I then should kiss!

Vince Young hasn't played in the NFL since 2011, but he apparently wants to give professional football one more try...Young, 33, is one of several veteran NFL players that has garnered some interest from the new Spring League, an independent football league that will debut in April.

A college football superstar, leading the Texas Longhorns to a BCS championship with a victory over USC in the 2006 Rose Bowl, Young was selected third overall by Tennessee in the NFL draft.

He made the Pro Bowl twice in four seasons with the Titans but was cut after the 2010 season following a disagreement with then-coach Jeff Fisher. After that, he played sparingly as a backup for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2011 and didn’t make any regular-season rosters after stints with the Buffalo Bills, Green Bay Packers and Cleveland Browns through 2014.

Young filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January 2014 and accepted a job with the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement at the University of Texas that summer. He was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated in January 2015 and was sentenced to 18 months’ probation after pleading no contest last month.

He never really had an NFL arm. This is nothing to be ashamed of. Plenty of great college quarterbacks didn’t have an NFL arm – Cade McNown was one.

Kiara Robles is the beautiful young lady Trump supporter who was attacked and pepper sprayed at a UC Berkeley event. The anti-Free Speech thugs in Berkeley hit innocent people over the head with flag poles and engaged in violent attacks on bystanders.

Kiara Robles and her friends were brutally attacked by UC Berkeley bullies. The shysters at the New York Times are on the side of the anti-Free Speech thugs who use violence to shut down speech they don't like.

Kiara Robles has now predicted that Marine Le Pen will be the next president of France. Robles also says that France will leave the European Union. I agree with Kiara Robles.

Watch the French cop cars in the video that Robles sent out on Twitter. The French police cars are retreating from the mob. The French cops were probably ordered to avoid any conflict with the mob. The cops at UC Berkeley were ordered to stand down too.

Which nation descends into civil war first, France or the United States?

While agreeing with your comment I must point out that it’s not civil war we’re talking about. Ejecting unwanted invaders is not civil war.

It will be civil war if the ones who invite and protect the “wretched refuse” vigorously attempt to obstruct any vigorous ejection. It’s not like the invaders magically strolled into entirely hostile countries. They have help from native-born traitors, interlopers, and masses of useful idiots who may or may not wake to their own natural interests before interesting times get more interesting.

He scored a 6 on the Wonderlic IQ test, who better to work as a university diversicrat? plus he misses eating at The Cheesecake Factory, probably why he needs an NFL paycheck.

Unladen, Young passed through Buffalo, never played in a game as I recall. There was a story that he never packed a suitcase or garment bag. Discarded clothes after wearing and buy new as needed. Did I mention he is flat ass broke.

Laocoon and his sons, which was dug up around the time Columbus discovered America, was sculpted in the second century BC. Google it. We may admire the Renaissance artists, since time has reduced the scope of our general knowledge to the very best of their lot, but they were, themselves, in awe of the Ancients, whom they emulated. I saw Laocoon in the Vatican and only the Rape of Persephone has left a deeper impression on me.

You're welcome. If you are ever in Rome, reserve a ticket to the Galleria Borghese, within walking distance of the tourist center, where they have The Rape of Persephone (where the sculptor actually modeled the impressions the fingers dug into the flesh would leave) and quite a few other treasures. And, in Florence, don't miss Hercules and Cacus (which is right out in the main square). The detailing of the musculature is extraordinary (front and back)... no homo.

The city of Florence should dress David from head to toe in black, including a mask, so he would stop being such a Symbol of Hate.

Dunno, Steve. Would that be enough? I mean, we are talking about a statue that represents the White Man as the apotheosis of humanity. That's really triggering. Just imagine what TN Coates must feel when he looks at it.How can his black body measure up?

No, it seems to me that the Taliban solution must be applied. To prevent POC from enduring mental trauma, we should hammer the statue into dust.It's the only way to be sure.

Syon, Funny comment and TN Coates’ new book…”When I encountered David on an escalator.”

Homos deserve more than rap. How about we take their high culture and kitsch away, and force them into middlebrow, white, suburban male culture. Polo shirts, khakis, Wallabe shoes, Arnold Palmers, sitcom reruns, Tom Clancy books, country music.

While agreeing with your comment I must point out that it's not civil war we're talking about. Ejecting unwanted invaders is not civil war.

Charles is right.

It will be civil war if the ones who invite and protect the “wretched refuse” vigorously attempt to obstruct any vigorous ejection. It’s not like the invaders magically strolled into entirely hostile countries. They have help from native-born traitors, interlopers, and masses of useful idiots who may or may not wake to their own natural interests before interesting times get more interesting.

Laocoon and his sons, which was dug up around the time Columbus discovered America, was sculpted in the second century BC. Google it. We may admire the Renaissance artists, since time has reduced the scope of our general knowledge to the very best of their lot, but they were, themselves, in awe of the Ancients, whom they emulated. I saw Laocoon in the Vatican and only the Rape of Persephone has left a deeper impression on me.

Is there any work of art or sculpture by an African that even remotely compares to any work by Michelangelo or Da Vinci or d” Agarte? If so please provide a link.

Laocoon and his sons, which was dug up around the time Columbus discovered America, was sculpted in the second century BC.

Laocoon and his sons, which was dug up around the time Columbus discovered America, was sculpted in the second century BC. Google it. We may admire the Renaissance artists, since time has reduced the scope of our general knowledge to the very best of their lot, but they were, themselves, in awe of the Ancients, whom they emulated. I saw Laocoon in the Vatican and only the Rape of Persephone has left a deeper impression on me.

Interesting to note Michelangelo’s role regarding the proper placement of the arm:

When the statue was discovered, Laocoön’s right arm was missing, along with part of the hand of one child and the right arm of the other, and various sections of snake. The older son, on the right, was detached from the other two figures.[40] The age of the altar used as a seat by Laocoön remains uncertain.[41] Artists and connoisseurs debated how the missing parts should be interpreted. Michelangelo suggested that the missing right arms were originally bent back over the shoulder. Others, however, believed it was more appropriate to show the right arms extended outwards in a heroic gesture

In 1906 Ludwig Pollak, archaeologist, art dealer and director of the Museo Barracco, discovered a fragment of a marble arm in a builder‘s yard in Rome, close to the findspot of the group. Noting a stylistic similarity to the Laocoön group he presented it to the Vatican Museums: it remained in their storerooms for half a century. In 1957 the museum decided that this arm—bent, as Michelangelo had suggested—had originally belonged to this Laocoön, and replaced it. According to Paolo Liverani: “Remarkably, despite the lack of a critical section, the join between the torso and the arm was guaranteed by a drill hole on one piece which aligned perfectly with a corresponding hole on the other”.

But the distribution of flyers featuring the greatest work of art by a single artist demands massive coverage.

You're being kind of disingenuous here. Obviously this is getting coverage because they're flyers for a white nationalist group, and they were posted around the African-American studies department. It would have gotten coverage even if there was no artwork on the flyers and they just printed the organization's name on them. And posters for the art club or something with Michaelangelo's David wouldn't have gotten covered.

Someone should make similar looking art club flyers just to bate the SJWs. It would expose their inner Don Quixote.

“Someone hung a flyer of this racist statue to promote their ‘art’ club!”

Laocoon and his sons, which was dug up around the time Columbus discovered America, was sculpted in the second century BC. Google it. We may admire the Renaissance artists, since time has reduced the scope of our general knowledge to the very best of their lot, but they were, themselves, in awe of the Ancients, whom they emulated. I saw Laocoon in the Vatican and only the Rape of Persephone has left a deeper impression on me.

Regarding the ancients versus Renaissance men, I’m not an expert on sculpture or architecture. But I’d definitely say modern painting blows ancient painting out of the water, as does the music, though admittedly I’ve only heard snatches of ancient music. I also prefer their lyric poetry and prose fiction.

3. Socialism for Jews. As 2% of population, they must hold 2% of wealth.

4. Rap culture for homomania. Call homos the f-word.

5. Antifa for Detroit. Send hipster anarchists to black hoods

6. Open borders for Harvard. Open admission for everyone.

Homos deserve more than rap. How about we take their high culture and kitsch away, and force them into middlebrow, white, suburban male culture. Polo shirts, khakis, Wallabe shoes, Arnold Palmers, sitcom reruns, Tom Clancy books, country music.

Kind to the world, but to itself unkind,
A worm is born, that dying noiselessly
Despoils itself to clothe fair limbs, and be
In its true worth by death alone divined.
Oh, would that I might die, for her to find
Raiment in my outworn mortality!
That, changing like the snake, I might be free
To cast the slough wherein I dwell confined!
Nay, were it mine, that shaggy fleece that stays,
Woven and wrought into a vestment fair,
Around her beauteous bosom in such bliss!
All through the day she’d clasp me! Would I were
The shoes that bear her burden! When the ways
Were wet with rain, her feet I then should kiss!

It could just have been the translator, since I don't read Italian. But I was shocked at how good was Michelangelo's poetry. Especially considering he's already a freak of nature for having mastered sculpture, painting, and architecture. At least those are all plastic arts. To think he mastered at least form of literature, too.

Regarding the ancients versus Renaissance men, I'm not an expert on sculpture or architecture. But I'd definitely say modern painting blows ancient painting out of the water, as does the music, though admittedly I've only heard snatches of ancient music. I also prefer their lyric poetry and prose fiction.

I was limiting my thinking to the time talked about in the post above, which was around 1492. Shakespeare didn't bloom until a century or so later. Which is Late Renaissance at best, spilling over into the Baroque, I think.

If we're going to include the Elizabethans, then Shakespeare Marlowe, Johnson, Webster, and Middleton probably beat out the Greeks for me. I've certainly read more Shakespeare alone than the Greeks put together.

But the distribution of flyers featuring the greatest work of art by a single artist demands massive coverage.

You're being kind of disingenuous here. Obviously this is getting coverage because they're flyers for a white nationalist group, and they were posted around the African-American studies department. It would have gotten coverage even if there was no artwork on the flyers and they just printed the organization's name on them. And posters for the art club or something with Michaelangelo's David wouldn't have gotten covered.

And yet, I don’t think the flyers were intended to intimidate black students. They were intended to grab the attention of white students who are taking black-studies classes.

I’m excited to read the whole story and learn how the school’s professors of European-American history reacted, and what kinds of flyers were posted outside the Department of European-American & European Diaspora Studies.

Kind to the world, but to itself unkind,
A worm is born, that dying noiselessly
Despoils itself to clothe fair limbs, and be
In its true worth by death alone divined.
Oh, would that I might die, for her to find
Raiment in my outworn mortality!
That, changing like the snake, I might be free
To cast the slough wherein I dwell confined!
Nay, were it mine, that shaggy fleece that stays,
Woven and wrought into a vestment fair,
Around her beauteous bosom in such bliss!
All through the day she'd clasp me! Would I were
The shoes that bear her burden! When the ways
Were wet with rain, her feet I then should kiss!

It could just have been the translator, since I don’t read Italian. But I was shocked at how good was Michelangelo’s poetry. Especially considering he’s already a freak of nature for having mastered sculpture, painting, and architecture. At least those are all plastic arts. To think he mastered at least form of literature, too.

I was limiting my thinking to the time talked about in the post above, which was around 1492. Shakespeare didn’t bloom until a century or so later. Which is Late Renaissance at best, spilling over into the Baroque, I think.

If we’re going to include the Elizabethans, then Shakespeare Marlowe, Johnson, Webster, and Middleton probably beat out the Greeks for me. I’ve certainly read more Shakespeare alone than the Greeks put together.

I was limiting my thinking to the time talked about in the post above, which was around 1492. Shakespeare didn’t bloom until a century or so later. Which is Late Renaissance at best, spilling over into the Baroque, I think.

The Renaissance period in England begins and ends later than it does Italy. The peak for the English Renaissance is roughly 1550-1600.

Search within youtube and you will get 918 hits for "we wuz kangz". Back in the 1990s whenever I had to drive through or near NYC I would turn on the infamous WLIB-AM radio station. It was infamous for all black programing and one or two shows were in the we wuz kangz vein going on about Egypt and building Pyramids. The great black civilizations of Africa and so on. Another show I remember was "Your credit repair doctor"

Tebow was stunningly successful the one year that TPTB gave him a chance in Denver. Sold a LOT of team merchandise because the fans love, love, loved him. Next year, the outspoken Christian was traded to a losing franchise in (((New York))), where they told him to be a blocker on the punt team.

Vince Young hasn't played in the NFL since 2011, but he apparently wants to give professional football one more try...Young, 33, is one of several veteran NFL players that has garnered some interest from the new Spring League, an independent football league that will debut in April.

A college football superstar, leading the Texas Longhorns to a BCS championship with a victory over USC in the 2006 Rose Bowl, Young was selected third overall by Tennessee in the NFL draft.

He made the Pro Bowl twice in four seasons with the Titans but was cut after the 2010 season following a disagreement with then-coach Jeff Fisher. After that, he played sparingly as a backup for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2011 and didn’t make any regular-season rosters after stints with the Buffalo Bills, Green Bay Packers and Cleveland Browns through 2014.

Young filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January 2014 and accepted a job with the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement at the University of Texas that summer. He was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated in January 2015 and was sentenced to 18 months’ probation after pleading no contest last month.

If “Radio” gets yet another shot at the NFL while Tebow remains whitelisted for life, they should just go ahead and change the name to the Negro Football League.

I was limiting my thinking to the time talked about in the post above, which was around 1492. Shakespeare didn't bloom until a century or so later. Which is Late Renaissance at best, spilling over into the Baroque, I think.

If we're going to include the Elizabethans, then Shakespeare Marlowe, Johnson, Webster, and Middleton probably beat out the Greeks for me. I've certainly read more Shakespeare alone than the Greeks put together.

I was limiting my thinking to the time talked about in the post above, which was around 1492. Shakespeare didn’t bloom until a century or so later. Which is Late Renaissance at best, spilling over into the Baroque, I think.

The Renaissance period in England begins and ends later than it does Italy. The peak for the English Renaissance is roughly 1550-1600.

Plenty of great college quarterbacks didn’t have an NFL arm – Cade McNown was one.

And, apparently, Tim Tebow. I still can't understand why Tebow never made it a few more years as, at least, a third string backup QB; or never went to the CFL; or never moved to a different position.

Tebow was stunningly successful the one year that TPTB gave him a chance in Denver. Sold a LOT of team merchandise because the fans love, love, loved him. Next year, the outspoken Christian was traded to a losing franchise in (((New York))), where they told him to be a blocker on the punt team.

Yeah, that's not really how it happened. The Broncos went 8-8 that year and staggered into the playoffs on the strength of their defense after losing their last three games. All four AFC West teams were mediocre that year and the Broncos won the division on a tiebreaker. They won their Wild Card game against the Steelers in OT after a blown pass coverage led to a short pass from Tebow turning into an 80 yard TD. They went to New England the next week and were beaten easily by the Patriots.

Tebow's performances were uneven, he would follow up great plays with some truly awful throws and his statistics were not great overall. A couple of games, like the regular season finale against the Chiefs, were just dreadful. He was not "stunningly successful." There probably was some discrimination against him for being an outspoken Christian, but it is not the main reason he never received another shot after the Broncos. Mark Brunell was an outspoken Christian quarterback in the NFL for 19 years. The media circus aspect of Tebow's career is most likely the reason why teams didn't want him. ESPN covered his every move because of the fan interest and most coaches didn't want that extra scrutiny for a player they knew wasn't going to develop into a starter for them. If there had been less fan interest in him personally, he would have lasted longer in the NFL.

I don't know what the greatest work of art by a single artist is, but David isn't even the most famous one. That would be the Mona Lisa. Don't get me wrong, Michelangelo was great and SJWs are scum, but I think Steve got a little carried away there.

Would have to disagree. Mona Lisa is extraordinary but the technical demands of painting vs those of carving marble with a hammer and chisel are not comparable. The Mona Lisa is probably the most well-known piece art in the world but fame (God knows there are examples ad nauseum in Hollywood) is not necessarily the same as greatness. Michelangelo’s accomplishment with hammer and chisel far surpasses the Mona Lisa in the sheer technical demands of the medium. Perhaps even more of an accomplishment than David is Michelangelo’s ‘Pieta’ in that it transmits the anguished depth of parental bereavement in a way that no other work of art has ever approached.

Leonardo da Vinci and some of the other Renaissance artists would have disagreed that sculpture was more technically demanding than painting. These artists thought painting was more challenging because of the effort required to create the illusion of three-dimensionality.

Would have to disagree. Mona Lisa is extraordinary but the technical demands of painting vs those of carving marble with a hammer and chisel are not comparable. The Mona Lisa is probably the most well-known piece art in the world but fame (God knows there are examples ad nauseum in Hollywood) is not necessarily the same as greatness. Michelangelo's accomplishment with hammer and chisel far surpasses the Mona Lisa in the sheer technical demands of the medium. Perhaps even more of an accomplishment than David is Michelangelo's 'Pieta' in that it transmits the anguished depth of parental bereavement in a way that no other work of art has ever approached.

The Mona Lisa doesn’t compare to David in terms of the impact of viewing it in person.

Had those blacks been brought over as free laborers, they would have caused the same problems.

Suppose the US had brought over 300,000 white slaves and 300,000 black free laborers(as immigrants).

Which group would be causing more problem today?

The descendants of white slaves or descendants of black free laborers?

I say the blacks.

Or consider another alternative.

Suppose the US had brought over 300,000 Chinese slaves.

Would their descendants be causing much trouble for whites?

No. Because Chinese are smaller and weaker than whites, white men would retain manly pride as top athletes and studs in the nation. There would be no Chinese Muhammad Ali’s, Jesse Owens’, and Michael Jordans. No Chinese thugs roaming the streets and playing knockout game.

And since Chinese men have soft voices, they never would have produced MLK and all those Magic Vocal Negroes. Whites wouldn’t have been spellbound by Chinese Magic.

So, the real problem was NOT slavery but race. Whites brought over blacks.

Look at Europe. It is taking in free immigrant blacks, but they cause the same problems that blacks cause in the US.

Blacks commit more crime. Also, because blacks are stronger and faster, they take over sports and gain ‘hero’ status and turn white boys into benchwarmerse. Also, they got stronger voices, so they win in music and dance. Also, their sexual aggression leads to the Afro-colonization of white wombs that produce black babies.

The lesson to learn from this is NEVER BRING PEOPLE WHO ARE STRONGER THAN YOUR OWN RACE INTO YOUR NATION.

Whites should have brought over white slaves or slaves of a race other than black.

But whites brought over black slaves. The real problem was not slavery per se but RACE. Whites brought over the stronger and more aggressive race. Had 300,000 black free-folks been allowed into the US, their descendants would have caused the same problems, same dangers, and same anxieties to the white race that the descendants of 300,000 black slaves did.
The problem is black genetics, and this owes to 100,000 yrs of evolution in Africa than measly 200 yrs of slavery in the US.

Look at blacks in America. Slavery ended long long ago, and blacks even got absolute equality under the law.

People say the SIN of slavery is the reason for the racial problem. But isn’t genocide worse than slavery? The G-word has often been used to describe the plight of American Indians. So, one could argue that the sin against Indians was far worse. But where is the Big Problem with Indians in the US?

This is almost certainly legit. That’s what Identity Evropa does, put up that exact kind of maximally inoffensive poster around colleges. They’ve done it in the SF Bay area, LA, and a few other places. It wouldn’t surprise me to learn that they have a member in Bloomington.

You’re welcome. If you are ever in Rome, reserve a ticket to the Galleria Borghese, within walking distance of the tourist center, where they have The Rape of Persephone (where the sculptor actually modeled the impressions the fingers dug into the flesh would leave) and quite a few other treasures. And, in Florence, don’t miss Hercules and Cacus (which is right out in the main square). The detailing of the musculature is extraordinary (front and back)… no homo.

In trying to think of an alternative to The David, the Laocoon also occurred to me (also the wooden altar by Veit Stoss in Krakow). But Steve has a point, that is, The David may or may not be the greatest single work of art created by man, but #1 - it surpasses paintings because it is 3D, and #2 - it is a single piece, with a single focus, and a single person. (Sorry to leave music out of the equation, but that's the way it goes: if we were doing architecture, I would at least to a hat tip to the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, a sight like this is simply stupefying)

I’ve never been to Barcelona and hesitate to do so because I hear it’s thronged and schlonged with tourists. Not that other cultural cities aren’t, but I wasn’t taking that into consideration when I decided to visit them. Or when I do so for work. I’ve become stuffy, I guess. I really liked Madrid! Bonus – almost all of the obvious tourists I was hearing on the streets were Hispanophones, which helped with the… immersion.

Well, obviously, the concept of "law" is merely a white, patriarchal, bourgeois structure of oppression that allows racism, sexism, bigotry, homophobia and transphobia, so it has no validity for social justice warriors.

Seriously, the academy has become a Bolshevik institution, subsidized by your tax dollars and your government. Colleges are, for practical purposes, the "vanguard of the proletariat" just as Lenin saw the Party.

Western Civilization cannot and will not survive unless colleges and universities are purged of these subversives. And soon.

At minimum, cut ALL Federal funding for "higher" education, and make the colleges and universities pay taxes.

That'll make the pips squeak. The administrators will throw the Bolsheviks overboard in a heartbeat as soon as it starts costing them actual MONEY to keep these people in their sinecures.

Beyond that, you could have the Department of Justice start prosecuting college employees and student groups for First Amendment civil rights violations. A few dozen of the little LGBTQ "antifa" terrorists given 20 year prison sentences will send the rest of them scurrying back to their ratholes.

Unladen, Young passed through Buffalo, never played in a game as I recall. There was a story that he never packed a suitcase or garment bag. Discarded clothes after wearing and buy new as needed. Did I mention he is flat ass broke.

Not surprising, I read he spent $5K per visit to The Cheesecake Factory, and he went there every week while with the Titans, I guess IQ tests can informative.

Tebow was stunningly successful the one year that TPTB gave him a chance in Denver. Sold a LOT of team merchandise because the fans love, love, loved him. Next year, the outspoken Christian was traded to a losing franchise in (((New York))), where they told him to be a blocker on the punt team.

I think I understand it just fine.

Yeah, that’s not really how it happened. The Broncos went 8-8 that year and staggered into the playoffs on the strength of their defense after losing their last three games. All four AFC West teams were mediocre that year and the Broncos won the division on a tiebreaker. They won their Wild Card game against the Steelers in OT after a blown pass coverage led to a short pass from Tebow turning into an 80 yard TD. They went to New England the next week and were beaten easily by the Patriots.

Tebow’s performances were uneven, he would follow up great plays with some truly awful throws and his statistics were not great overall. A couple of games, like the regular season finale against the Chiefs, were just dreadful. He was not “stunningly successful.” There probably was some discrimination against him for being an outspoken Christian, but it is not the main reason he never received another shot after the Broncos. Mark Brunell was an outspoken Christian quarterback in the NFL for 19 years. The media circus aspect of Tebow’s career is most likely the reason why teams didn’t want him. ESPN covered his every move because of the fan interest and most coaches didn’t want that extra scrutiny for a player they knew wasn’t going to develop into a starter for them. If there had been less fan interest in him personally, he would have lasted longer in the NFL.

Oh, c'mon - it's not just the bigness, & the nakedness. It really is...awesome, if you will. And justly iconic.

Personally, my choice for the world's single greatest visual experience would be Caravaggio's St. Matthew triptych at San Luigi dei Francesi, in Rome - closely followed by his "Conversion of St Paul" & "Crucifixion of St Peter" at Santa Maria del Popolo.

Yeah, it's a really BIG statue and he needs to put on a pair of underwear (is he circumcised?). Plus, every tourist in the world wants to stand beneath his awesomeness.

Oh, c’mon – it’s not just the bigness, & the nakedness. It really is…awesome, if you will. And justly iconic.

Personally, my choice for the world’s single greatest visual experience would be Caravaggio’s St. Matthew triptych at San Luigi dei Francesi, in Rome – closely followed by his “Conversion of St Paul” & “Crucifixion of St Peter” at Santa Maria del Popolo.

This one is bigger:
http://www.atlasobscura.com/places/african-renaissance-monument

Stereotypical story of corruption combined with ignorance and imaginary pride that is Africa. The story is pretty much indicative of any nation in central and southern Africa, especially since they don’t have the evil white man interfering with their business.
Wade gets 30℅ of the tourism take because it was his idea. How hilarious. I wonder if his cut comes before or after they collect the 25 mil it cost to build. Another thing is, what is considered tourism revenue? Any time a stranger comes to town and buys some roasted monkey meat on a stick , does a portion of the profit goes to Wade? Sounds like a massive shake down of the local shopkeepers.
He took a page right out of the Democratic play book.

At minimum, cut ALL Federal funding for “higher” education, and make the colleges and universities pay taxes.

That’ll make the pips squeak. The administrators will throw the Bolsheviks overboard in a heartbeat as soon as it starts costing them actual MONEY to keep these people in their sinecures.

Beyond that, you could have the Department of Justice start prosecuting college employees and student groups for First Amendment civil rights violations. A few dozen of the little LGBTQ “antifa” terrorists given 20 year prison sentences will send the rest of them scurrying back to their ratholes.

Regarding the ancients versus Renaissance men, I'm not an expert on sculpture or architecture. But I'd definitely say modern painting blows ancient painting out of the water, as does the music, though admittedly I've only heard snatches of ancient music. I also prefer their lyric poetry and prose fiction.

Not much. I'm not even sure we've cracked the ancient Greek notation system, beyond guessing. But I have heard excerpts of interpretations, and it's plausible that's what it actually sounded like. And it sounds like an awful lot of world folk music.

The music of the Renaissance, on the other hand, launched the classical era, and laid the groundwork for all of what is, I'm confident, the best music produced by man. (Including low art like rock n roll.)

Not much. I’m not even sure we’ve cracked the ancient Greek notation system, beyond guessing. But I have heard excerpts of interpretations, and it’s plausible that’s what it actually sounded like. And it sounds like an awful lot of world folk music.

The music of the Renaissance, on the other hand, launched the classical era, and laid the groundwork for all of what is, I’m confident, the best music produced by man. (Including low art like rock n roll.)

I guarantee that when some black-clad thug attacks someone with a concealed carry permit and they defend themselves the NYT will spill plenty of ink. But of course it will be slandering the one who protected himself and not the aggressor.

The thing that is interesting is that something very like that happened in Seattle last month and as far as I saw the NYT did not cover it. I think the incident had a few characteristics (e.g. existence of video, demographics of people involved) which did not serve the narrative, but still surprised at the lack of coverage.

That incident happened January 22, but I have seen very little coverage anywhere in February. Does anyone know how this is playing out?

The history of the Mona Lisa is interesting. For centuries, it was considered nothing special among masterpieces. But then Leonardo began to appeal to Enlightenment admirers as the ideal man, with an artistic genius matched by scientific curiosity. Then came the idolisation of the painting by aesthetes like Théophile Gautier and Walter Pater, and the Mona Lisa cult really took off in the second half of the nineteenth century. But in an assessment of its art works in 1852, the Louvre rated Raphael’s Holy Family at more than six times the value of the Mona Lisa.

Leonardo was a superstar by about 1500 or earlier, the world's most famous celebrity, but his Last Supper had more to do with it than his Mona Lisa. The Mona Lisa cult is indeed a second half of the 19th Century thing.

Part of it is that there really aren't very many paintings by Leonardo, so popular opinion has to settle upon a few to illustrate his enormous fame. The Last Supper has been falling apart forever, so it alone won't do. I like The Lady with an Ermine, but Leonardo didn't bother painting in a background. Plus that's in Krakow, which isn't as convenient as the Louvre.

The history of the Mona Lisa is interesting. For centuries, it was considered nothing special among masterpieces. But then Leonardo began to appeal to Enlightenment admirers as the ideal man, with an artistic genius matched by scientific curiosity. Then came the idolisation of the painting by aesthetes like Théophile Gautier and Walter Pater, and the Mona Lisa cult really took off in the second half of the nineteenth century. But in an assessment of its art works in 1852, the Louvre rated Raphael's Holy Family at more than six times the value of the Mona Lisa.

Leonardo was a superstar by about 1500 or earlier, the world’s most famous celebrity, but his Last Supper had more to do with it than his Mona Lisa. The Mona Lisa cult is indeed a second half of the 19th Century thing.

Part of it is that there really aren’t very many paintings by Leonardo, so popular opinion has to settle upon a few to illustrate his enormous fame. The Last Supper has been falling apart forever, so it alone won’t do. I like The Lady with an Ermine, but Leonardo didn’t bother painting in a background. Plus that’s in Krakow, which isn’t as convenient as the Louvre.

At minimum, cut ALL Federal funding for "higher" education, and make the colleges and universities pay taxes.

That'll make the pips squeak. The administrators will throw the Bolsheviks overboard in a heartbeat as soon as it starts costing them actual MONEY to keep these people in their sinecures.

Beyond that, you could have the Department of Justice start prosecuting college employees and student groups for First Amendment civil rights violations. A few dozen of the little LGBTQ "antifa" terrorists given 20 year prison sentences will send the rest of them scurrying back to their ratholes.

That would be a political battle the likes of which this country hasn’t seen in at least 50 years. Maybe 150.

Would have to disagree. Mona Lisa is extraordinary but the technical demands of painting vs those of carving marble with a hammer and chisel are not comparable. The Mona Lisa is probably the most well-known piece art in the world but fame (God knows there are examples ad nauseum in Hollywood) is not necessarily the same as greatness. Michelangelo's accomplishment with hammer and chisel far surpasses the Mona Lisa in the sheer technical demands of the medium. Perhaps even more of an accomplishment than David is Michelangelo's 'Pieta' in that it transmits the anguished depth of parental bereavement in a way that no other work of art has ever approached.

Leonardo da Vinci and some of the other Renaissance artists would have disagreed that sculpture was more technically demanding than painting. These artists thought painting was more challenging because of the effort required to create the illusion of three-dimensionality.

This is a fun comment thread: I was just in Rome for the first time a few weeks ago and so I saw for the first time some of the works mentioned here.

The single sculpture that made the biggest impact on me was Michelangelo’s Moses. Second to that was Bernini’s Rape of Persephone. Interestingly though, Bernini’s Apollo and Daphne seemed to be the centerpiece of the Galleria Borghese and was certainly more popular among the tourists than the Rape of Persephone when I was there.

I imagine Michelangelo’s Pieta would have made a similarly large or larger impact on me than Moses had I been able to view it from a closer vantage point and not from behind bullet-proof glass.

As far as paintings go, leaving aside the Sistine Chapel ceiling (with which it seems unfair to compare other non-Sistine-Chapel-ceiling-sized paintings), Raphael’s The Transfiguration had the biggest impact on me.

Leonardo was a superstar by about 1500 or earlier, the world's most famous celebrity, but his Last Supper had more to do with it than his Mona Lisa. The Mona Lisa cult is indeed a second half of the 19th Century thing.

Part of it is that there really aren't very many paintings by Leonardo, so popular opinion has to settle upon a few to illustrate his enormous fame. The Last Supper has been falling apart forever, so it alone won't do. I like The Lady with an Ermine, but Leonardo didn't bother painting in a background. Plus that's in Krakow, which isn't as convenient as the Louvre.

Doesn’t the Mona Lisa’s iconic status also have something to do with the fact that it was stolen?

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